Highly educated but occupationally differentiated: the members of Finland’s Green League

The socio-demographic profiles and occupations of the members of the Green League and other Finnish political parties are examined using survey data collected from the members of Finland’s six major political parties (n = 12,427). Significant differentiation in occupational structure is revealed among Green party members. The importance of understanding how Green party members differ by background is emphasised while providing new approaches to studying party members’ interests and goals.     

Response of wheat and barley seedlings on soil contamination with bromides

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - Environmental pollution is becoming one of the most important global problems. Understanding the main factors affecting accumulation of toxic trace elements...     

Spatially realistic theory of metapopulation ecology

Much of spatial ecology since the late 1960s has been dominated by two theories, the dynamic theory of island biogeography and the classical metapopulation theory. The latter theory largely replaced the former one in the 1980s, especially in conservation applications. It is only recently that ecologists have fully realized that a relatively simple general theory can be readily constructed that makes some of the simplifying assumptions of the two earlier theories unnecessary. The spatially realistic metapopulation theory thereby provides a more unified framework for spatial ecology than the island theory or the classical metapopulation theory. This article describes the application of the spatially realistic metapopulation theory to real metapopulations living in highly fragmented landscapes. I discuss the principal messages for population ecology and conservation biology, and I also place this theory into a broader context of other approaches to spatial ecology.     

Degradation of potassium formate in the unsaturated zone of a sandy aquifer

This paper presents results from a lysimeter experiment on the fate of potassium formate, an alternative deicing agent. The experiment was performed through the winter and spring to identify any thermal sensitivity in the transport and biodegradation of formate in the lysimeter. Ninety-eight percent of the total quantity of formate applied was degraded while percolating through the 1.7-m-thick unsaturated sand layer within the lysimeter. Concomitantly, the bicarbonate concentration of the percolating water increased. The low concentrations of nitrogen (0.02 mg L(-1)) and phosphorous (<0.002 mg L(-1)) in the percolated water, however, potentially limited microbial activity. During the study period, 99% of the applied potassium was retained in the lysimeter, and the ion exchange between the potassium and a variety of monovalent and divalent ions was assumed to be responsible for the leaching of barium, calcium, magnesium, and sodium from the soil material. Except for manganese, the concentrations of the studied metals in the percolated water did not exceed the threshold values set for drinking water by the Council of the European Union. By contrast, the application of potassium formate had a detrimental effect on the vegetation on the lysimeter. To conclude, formate was effectively degraded in the sandy lysimeter and its application did not cause major undesirable changes in the quality of the percolating water. Further research at field scale is, however, needed for instance on the biodegradation of potassium formate and on its impacts on roadside vegetation.     

Assessing the impact of CO2 emission control scenarios in Finland on radiative forcing and greenhouse effect

Carbon dioxide emission reduction scenarios for Finland are compared with respect to the radiative forcing they cause (heating power due to the absorption of infrared radiation in the atmosphere). Calculations are made with the REFUGE system model using three carbon cycle models to obtain an uncertainity band for the development of the atmospheric concentration. The future emissions from the use of fossil fuels in Finland are described with three scenarios. In the reference scenario (business-as-usual), the emissions and the radiative forcing they cause would grow continuously. In the scenario of moderate emission reduction, the emissions would decrease annually by 1% from the first half of the next century. The radiative forcing would hardly decrease during the next century, however. In the scenario of strict emission reductions, the emissions are assumed to decrease annually by 3%, but the forcing would not decrease until approximately from the middle of the next century depending on the model used. Still, in the year 2100 the forcing would be considerably higher than the forcing in 1990. Due to the slow removal of CO₂ from the atmosphere by the oceans, it is difficult to reach a decreasing radiative forcing only by limiting fossil CO₂ emissions. The CO₂ emissions from fossil fuels in Finland contribute to the global emissions presently by about 0.2%. The relative contribution of Finnish CO₂ emissions from fossil fuels to the global forcing due to CO₂ emissions is presently somewhat less than 0.2% due to relatively smaller emissions in the past. The impact of the nonlinearity of both CO₂ removal from the atmosphere and of CO₂ absorption of infrared radiation on the results is discussed.     

Inbreeding and competitive ability in the common shrew (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Sorex araneus</Emphasis>)

Common shrews (Sorex araneus) maintain a foraging territory for most of their immature life. Possessing a high-quality territory is vital for overwinter survival in the harsh boreal climate, and hence, competitive ability in territorial disputes is expected to be an important component of individual fitness. To test possible association between individual inbreeding and fitness, we used neutral arena trials to assess the competitive performance of young common shrews. The experiment involved pairs of individuals originating from small island populations, where breeding must often occur between related individuals, and from large outbred mainland populations. The percentage of neutral arena tests that an individual won was highly significantly explained by internal relatedness, a surrogate measure of individual inbreeding, measured using ten microsatellite markers. Body size, sex, learning, and population type (mainland vs island) made no significant contributions. Even a low level of individual inbreeding may lead to significant adverse consequences in multiple territorial contests, which may represent a significant cause of inbreeding depression in many wild vertebrate populations.     

Early prenatal detection of diastrophic dysplasia

Diastrophic dysplasia, an autosomal recessive disorder, results in severe short-limbed dwarfism, progressive spinal and joint problems, and secondary psychosocial disability. The results of treatments are unsatisfactory. Four pregnant mothers at risk for an affected fetus were studied with an ultrasound scanner at 16 and 19 weeks of gestation. Each mother had a previous child with diastrophic dysplasia. The biparietal distance and the length of the long bones of the extremities were normal in three fetuses, whereas in one fetus there was a 30 per cent shortening of all long bones. The biparietal distance corresponded with the gestational age in all fetuses. In one fetus, diastrophic dysplasia was confirmed by fetoscopy and fetal radiograph at 19 weeks of gestation after the parents had decided to terminate the pregnancy. The skeletal radiograph and autopsy findings of the fetus verified the diagnosis. All other mothers were followed with repeated ultrasound examinations, and they delivered healthy babies. The retrospective follow-up of the four previous pregnancies and of the present one with affected fetuses disclosed that two mothers had had vaginal bleeding, two lymphedema, one abdominal pains, and one mother had had polyhydramnios. These complications were, however, mild and transient, and they could not be regarded as specific for pregnancies with affected fetuses.     

Applications of the industrial ecology concept in a research project: Technology and Climate Change (CLIMTECH) Research in Finland

This contribution to the Journal of Cleaner Production special issue ‘Applications of Industrial Ecology’ is based upon an extensive literature review, which produced four criteria to characterise research on the concept of industrial ecology (IE). The criteria are (1) material and energy flows, (2) systems improvement, (3) systems adaptation and (4) change management. The criteria were analysed against the six subject areas of the Technology and Climate Change (CLIMTECH) Research Programme in Finland to identify the applications of the concept of industrial ecology. The results of the analysis contribute (a) to the debate on the characteristics of the emerging concept of IE, (b) show IE characteristics of a large Finnish research project in the field of climate change mitigation and (c) invite scholars in the field to study the observed unclear and fuzzy role of the concept of IE in practical research project work. Responses to this article are encouraged for publication in the future issues of Journal of Cleaner Production.